Wednesday, 13 March 2013

Chandigarh: A young woman was thrashed and abused by Punjab Police officials in full public view in Punjab's Tarn Taran district recently on Wednesday tried to barge into the Punjab Assembly complex during the ongoing budget session.

The woman was stopped at the entry gate of the assembly building by security personnel, leading to ruckus at the spot. Congress leaders accompanying her jostled with security personnel. The woman could not reach the Assembly hall.

Leader of Opposition and senior Congress leader Sunil Jakhar was with the 21-year-old woman when she tried to enter the Assembly.

The woman, accompanied by her father, said she had come to the assembly complex to demand justice. Punjab Police on Monday arrested two policemen who had thrashed the woman.

"She did not have any entry pass. We stopped her for security reasons," a security official told reporters.

The assembly complex, located in Sector 1 here, is a high-security area manned by para-military forces and security personnel from Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh.

The young woman was slapped, pushed, abused and hit with a baton by policemen in uniform in Punjab's frontier district of Tarn Taran on March 3.

Four to five police personnel were caught on camera assaulting the young woman and her father after she reportedly complained to police against some taxi and truck drivers harassing her near a marriage hall in Tarn Taran district, 280 km from here.

The incident was recorded by a bystander on his mobile phone Sunday, and later aired by TV news channels.

An embarrassed Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal had last week ordered a magisterial probe into the incident. Badal directed the Tarn Taran district magistrate to ascertain the causes and circumstances which led to the incident and submit an inquiry report in three weeks.

New Delhi: Taking a tough stand, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday accused Italy of violating "every rule of diplomatic discourse" and asked it to send back the two marines undergoing trial for killing Indian fishermen, failing which there will be consequences on bilateral ties.

Responding to the issue raised by the Opposition in both Houses of Parliament, Singh noted that the country is agitated over Italy's action which is "unacceptable" and said the government will pursue diplomatic channels to bring the two marines back.

Urging the Italian authorities to respect the undertaking given to the Supreme Court, he said they should return the two accused - Massimiliano Latorre and Salvatore Girone - to stand trial here for the incident of February last year.

"They have violated every rule of diplomatic discourse and call into question solemn commitments given by an accredited representative of a government," Singh said in the Lok Sabha which witnessed uproar during Question Hour as well as Zero Hour.

The Prime Minister, who made a similar statement in Rajya Sabha, said the government has already made it clear that this action by the Italian government is "not acceptable".

"If they do not keep their word there will be consequences for our relations with Italy," Singh said firmly, adding that bilateral relationship has to function on the basis of trust.

Assuring Parliament that the government would continue to urge Italy through diplomatic channels to send back the marines, he wanted the members to act and speak together while dealing with the matter with the seriousness that it deserves.

The Prime Minister's response came after former External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh and Basudeb Acharia (CPI-M) attacked the government on the issue with the BJP leader dubbing the action of the Italian government as a "very curious Italian job".

Rajya Sabha also witnessed uproar over it with demands for arrest of the Italian ambassador Daniele Mancini.

Success of Samsung Electronics Co’s latest Galaxy phone, ready to be launched in New York on Thursday, could hinge on a supply backup plan aimed at preventing a repeat of a costly snag for its premium smartphone last year.

Some analysts predict the new Galaxy S 4 could top 10 million unit sales in the first month after its launch, so any hiccups in the smooth delivery of core components could be disastrous. The risks are high. A simple manufacturing snafu involving unsatisfactory design of handset cases cost Samsung some 2 million units of lost sales in just a month after it launched the S 3 in May last year.

Samsung Galaxy S4

“There could be, again, a supply bottleneck due to tight supply of components… but I think any such disruption will be very brief, as Samsung is making a bigger bet on the S 4 than on its predecessor with a backup plan to avoid such disruption,” said Mr. Greg Noh, an analyst at HMC Investment and Securities.

After pre-empting its launch with a marketing blitz for the new Galaxy phone, South Korean electronics giant also risks having overhyped its new phone, analysts warn. They say consumers could be disappointed if it has only incremental improvements rather than the dazzling features they’ve come to expect.

Samsung picked the United States for the launch of its top-selling Galaxy series, hoping to regain its lead in the crucial US market. Apple Inc outsold Samsung there for the first time in the quarter ending in December, even after Samsung spent a record $400 million on phone advertisements there last year.

The stakes are especially high for Samsung, which derives the majority of its annual profits from the product, while growth rates for the global smartphone market taper off.

Mr. J.K. Shin, head of Samsung’s mobile business and a newly elected board member, will skip his first Samsung shareholders meeting on Friday in Seoul in order to attend the Galaxy launch at the Radio City Music Hall.

“It’s got to be a blockbuster phone that beats its predecessor and competitors in nearly all aspects, otherwise Samsung could follow the footsteps of others and fail to manage expectations, which get only higher,” said David Choi, an analyst at SK Securities.

Samsung executives declined to comment on steps they’ve taken to ensure supplies keep flowing, but some analysts said a disruption of any component part could potentially cascade, interrupting deliveries.

“Based on checks we had with suppliers, Samsung has already done significant work to ensure smooth supply and not to repeat what they had to deal with last time,” said Lee Seung-woo, an analyst at IBK Securities.

“For now it appears there’s no major issue at all, but obviously we have to wait and see how smoothly it goes after the launch.”

Of particular concern are eight-core processor chips and screens, or even simple handset cases.

“Handset cases again appear to be in tight supply, and Samsung may use two different processors to maximize battery efficiency through the right combination of chips for different network conditions to yield the best performance,” Noh said.

FEATURES

The new Galaxy S4 phone is widely expected to boast crisp, full high-definition quality pictures, a slightly bigger 5-inch screen, a 13 mega-pixel rear camera, and an improved eight-core processor. which uses Google’s free Android software, may have functions that track the viewer’s eye movement, and boast an unbreakable or flexible screen.

“With so many great things speculated about the S4, it could actually disappoint in terms of wow factors,” said Choi at SK Securities. “If you see Samsung’s share price, which hasn’t moved much of late, I think you can get a more cool-headed assessment of what’s coming.”

Shares of Samsung, which has a $220 billion market value, have fallen 1 percent so far this year, while Apple shares tumbled nearly 20 percent as disappointing sales of iPhones raised fears that its dominance may be slipping.

“It’s about the buzz they can generate around the product,” said Ben Wood, an analyst at mobile consulting firm CCS Insight.

Samsung has developed a cheeky TV ad that mocks Apple customers, and dramatically ramped up spending on marketing and advertising, a cornerstone of Apple’s success.

“It’s not afraid to carpet bomb the world with marketing efforts to make sure nobody on the planet misses out on the story of the Galaxy S4,” Wood said.

SHIFTING FORTUNES

Such bravado underscores how far Samsung has come since its first Galaxy, which debuted in June 2010 in answer to the runaway success of the iPhone. That propelled Samsung to become the world’s top smartphone maker, vexing Apple which virtually created the smartphone market with its first iPhone in 2007.

The touchscreen-based look and feel of the Galaxy also prompted Apple to file global patent disputes against the South Korean firm.

In 2012, Samsung surpassed Apple as the world’s largest maker of smartphones, controlling 30 percent of the market versus Apple’s 19 percent. But in the high-end market, sales of Samsung’s Galaxy S and Note still lag far behind Apple’s iPhone, the best-selling smartphone globally.

As overall market growth slows, however, it is also becoming more competitive. Rivals such as LG Electronics Inc and Huawei Technologies have announced products with features and hardware comparable to those the upcoming Galaxy will reportedly have.

“I’m expecting them to come out with some new features they can hang their hat on,” said Avi Greengart, an analyst at Current Analysis, referring to the Galaxy launch.

“As long as the Galaxy S4 doesn’t regress and as long as it’s competitive with the flagship phones from other phone manufacturers, I give it really good chances of winning consumer sales even if it isn’t different for the sake of being different.”

Wednesday, 6 March 2013

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Friday, 15 February 2013

Chennai: From the time Michael Clarke made a memorable Test debut against India at Bengaluru in 2004 with an impressive 151, the Australian has grown from strength to strength.

The stylish batsman has tormented the bowling attack whenever he was up against the Indians. When the two teams last met down under, Clarke led his side to a 4-0 whitewash with astonishing displays of batting at Sydney (careerhigh 329 not out) and at Adelaide (210).

EXCERPTS:

On coming back to the country where his Test journey began:

It's always exciting to come to India as I've always enjoyed playing here. The main reason for that is people of India love the game of cricket. It is a special place for me because I made my Test debut here and I have so many fond memories. I suppose it's more special to come back as a captain.

On his career so far: It's been up and down. I guess -some good times, when the team has had a lot of success and I have scored some runs, and some tough times, when I have been dropped from the Test team and I didn't know if I was going to get back into the team. Now the positive is that the team is playing well and I am able to captain Australia.

On conditions here: IPL has certainly changed the comfort level of the players. Players know what the conditions are like when they come to India. The IPL has also been fantastic in that it has built relationships between players all around the world.

On shielding youngsters: Being a senior player, not just the captain, it is part of your responsibility. The responsibility is on some of us who have played a lot of Tests to stand up and lead from the front, make sure the youngsters are taken along. So it's part of my job to make sure I help them and as much as anything, be there for them through the good times and the tough times.

On Gambhir’s absence: I expected him to be in the Test the Test team. He is a wonderful player and has been for India for a long time now. I think there are a few bowlers in our team who are happy he is not playing. If he scores runs, I'm sure he will get his chance with the Indian team again.

No pre-series salvos?

It's not about what you say, it's about what you do on the field. As a player, as the Australian cricket team, that's our goal. It's no good making statements and comments and not backing them up. I'd rather people say less and do more, so that's our goal. Perform well on the field, that's all we say.

WASHINGTON: The United States Friday called on North Korea not to take any further provocative steps, as a US think tank said Pyongyang was preparing a launchpad that could pave the way to firing a long-range missile.

Asked about media reports that North Korea, also known as the DPRK, has told China it is preparing further nuclear tests, State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said such moves would just "lead to more isolation."

"The United States calls on the DPRK to refrain from additional provocative actions that would violate its international obligations and run counter to its commitments," she told journalists.

UN Security Council resolutions insist North Korea should not carry out any further nuclear tests, or face further global sanctions.

There was global outrage after Pyongyang on Tuesday defiantly carried out its third nuclear test, saying it was responding to US "hostility" after the UN Security Council condemned its last missile launch two months ago.

"The DPRK is not going to achieve anything in terms of the health, wealth, safety, (or) future of its own people by these kinds of continued provocative actions," Nuland said.

White House spokesman Josh Earnest, speaking aboard Air Force One, also stressed that Pyongyang should abide by UN resolutions.

"We encourage the North Koreans to live up to their international obligations, abandon their nuclear program and work with the rest of the international community to become a responsible member of the international community," he said.

38 North, a blog of the US-Korea Institute at Johns Hopkins University, said Thursday it had analyzed satellite photos that it said showed possible assistance from Iran at the Tonghae Satellite Launching Ground in northeastern North Korea.

38 North said a commercial satellite photograph taken on January 5 showed "important progress" since the area was hit with typhoons last year and indicated activity that was consistent with preparations for a launch.

But the website said there was not enough evidence to support speculation that North Korea could raise the stakes by testing its KN-08, a new missile with potential intercontinental range first displayed in a parade in April.

The website said that North Korea likely was preparing to test much larger rockets by the time the site is completed in 2016.

Pushed to the wall by the Italian government’s probe into the alleged payment of bribes to Indians for the Rs 3,750 crore AgustaWestland VVIP chopper deal, the ministry of defence (MoD) has instituted an internal inquiry even as it gets ready to cancel the deal. According to sources in the MoD, they have also found prima facie evidence that the specifications for the tender were tweaked to favour AgustaWestland.

The CBI will send its team to Italy next week to investigate the scam.
The process of cancellation of the contract with Italian firm Finnmeccanica was initiated on Friday afternoon. Sources told DNA that during the internal probe, names of two senior IAF officers and an Army Brigadier has emerged as the people who changed the technical specifications to favour the Italian major.

“During the probe, the names of two high ranked officers of the Air headquarters in New Delhi and an army officer has come out, as they were part of the committee to change parameters of technical specifications,” a senior MoD official told DNA. But despite indications, the MoD could not take any administrative action against these officers, as the government is awaiting a reply from their Italian counterparts.

“The MoD today issued a formal show cause notice to the AgustaWestland of the UK seeking cancellation of contract and taking other actions according to the terms of the contract and the Integrity Pact,” MoD spokesperson Sitanshu Kar said.

“With today’s show cause notice, the operation of the contract has been put on hold,” Kar added.

According to defence ministry officials, the government will also go for blacklisting the firm. Blacklisting of Finnmeccanica will lead to affect its military business of worth $8 billion (Rs, 44,000 crore) with India. After cancellation of the VIP chopper deal, the three AW 101 that have been delivered will be returned and the paid money will be forfeited.

Mobile consumers are returning Micromax’s Valentine’s Day love. Its newly released phone, the Canvas HD, has already sold over 9,000 units online in less than 24 hours, Micromax said today.

The Canvas HD which was launched exclusively online on Thursday has been Micromax’s one of the most awaited products this year.

Data from the company’s online partner, Snapdeal.com showed that the first lot of the Canvas HD was sold out within 15 minutes of announcing sale on the midnight of 14 February. The second lot of 300 units was also sold out within 15 minutes of the sale at 9 am and the third lot of 1,200 phones was sold in 45 minutes with the beginning of the sale at noon on Thursday.

“This product exceeded our expectations by a huge margin. We took this live at midnight and we were completely surprised to see all 500 units which we expected to sell in the entire day sold out within 15 minutes of launch. Our call volume shot through the roof with enquiries and we have replenished inventory levels to cater to more sales. This kind of pace of sales beats our previous records,” Tony Navin, vice president, Business Development, Snapdeal said.

Micromax, in a statement has said that got a booking order for 9,000 units of the Canvas HD, in less than 24 hours since its launch.

“After the unprecedented success of the Canvas 2, we are overwhelmed with the customer response for Canvas HD. This is the first time our online sales partners have ever witnessed a digital queue in cyberspace to such an extent for any product,” said Shubhodip Pal, CMO Micromax.

“We expect the sales of this device to touch a new high in the coming weeks which will soon be available for sale at all leading retail stores in the country. We hope to further strengthen our leadership in the new phablet category in India,” Pal said.

The phone which was launched on midnight of 14 February has seen a booking pace of 25 units per minute. Priced at Rs 13,990, the Canvas HD is Micromax’s first quad core processor phone and launched sales only online.

Micromax also launched the Bolt A35 on Valentine’s Day . It is its first phone in the Bolt category and comes with ‘Flash Transfer’. The Bolt category will include a new range of feature rich phones from Micromax whose flash transfer will enable users to share apps, games, photos, videos, songs and much more with just a swipe.

Srinagar: A Spanish tourist was among five people injured Friday in the Kashmir Valley as sporadic protests erupted against the hanging of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru. Despite a valley-wide curfew for the seventh straight day, protesters took to the streets in areas and clashed with security forces, both police and other sources said.

Police said the situation was "by and large peaceful" Friday. However, there were incidents of stone pelting at Naid Khai, Azad Gunj Baramulla, Handwara, Ajas Bandipora, Muran Pulwama, Charar-i-Sharief and Qaimoh Kulgam, a police statement said.

Police said they exercised maximum restraint while dealing with mobs. One man, Ghulam Nabi Dar of Bandipora district, was injured in his right leg and was hospitalized. It was not clear what precisely happened.

Three policemen were hit by stones and injured at Handwara and Charar-i-Sharief. The tourist from Madrid, Marcos Tovio, was also hit by a stone when he was going to the north Kashmir Gulmarg ski resort Friday afternoon, police said.

He was admitted at the Sher-e-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences Soura in Srinagar. Authorities imposed curfew in all major towns of the valley including Srinagar to foil protests over Afzal Guru's Feb 9 execution in New Delhi's Tihar Jail.

His body was then buried in the jail complex. In old city areas of Srinagar, Baramulla, Sopore, Anantnag, Pulwama and Shopian towns, uninterrupted curfew entered the seventh day.

Police sources said in some areas the curfew was relaxed in the evening to allow people to buy food and other essentials. Separatist leader Syed Ali Geelani has extended his call for a protest shutdown till Sunday.

Geelani had asked people to offer Afzal Guru's funeral prayers in absentia and collectively demand the return of his body to the family. The blockade of Internet and mobile telephones imposed February 9 continued for the seventh day Friday.

Chief Minister Omar Abdullah had asked separatist leaders not to prolong the shutdown. Omar said he cannot prevent people from identifying with Afzal Guru. "This is not a totalitarian state," he said earlier.

More than 40 youths have been taken into custody in the last six days during clashes with security forces or during night raids at some places. There is heavy deployment of police and paramilitary forces in all cities and towns of the valley.

The fight against the system — and former Haryana minister Gopal Goyal Kanda — took another life in the Sharma family. Six months after her daughter Geetika committed suicide in August in the family’s Ashok Vihar home, Anuradha Sharma also killed herself on Friday — by hanging herself in the same room as her daughter.
For, she said in her suicide note, she could never get over the trauma of Geetika’s death. “We found a suicide note in the house. Anuradha Sharma was depressed. The note says Gopal Kanda and Aruna Chaddha were responsible for Geetika’s death,” said P Karunakaran, DCP, northwest.

According to the police, Anuradha — an accountant in the finance ministry — returned from work at 4.30pm. She was alone at home. Her husband Dinesh and sister-in-law Jyoti were the first to see the body when they entered using a spare key and informed the police.

According to the police, Anuradha — an accountant in the finance ministry — returned from work at 4.30pm. She was alone at home. Her husband Dinesh and sister-in-law Jyoti were the first to see the body when they entered using a spare key and informed the police.

Earlier, Geetika’s suicide note also alleged ‘mental harassment’ by her boss Kanda, then a Haryana minister and managing director of the MDLR group.

Geetika was an airhostess in the group’s airline venture. After the airline folded up, she tried to get away but was forced to stay back and shifted to the group’s educational institution in Gurgaon.

During the probe, it emerged that Geetika and her family were well known to Kanda and his wife and both families had gone on tours and pilgrimages.

After Geetika’s death, Kanda and HR chief of the group Aruna Chaddha were arrested for abetment to suicide. But the family feels its loss was irreparable and its honour sullied irreversibly.

A fresh case of abetment to suicide has been registered against Kanda and Chaddha at north Delhi’s Bharat Nagar police station.

Comptroller and Auditor General Vinod Rai, whose reports on various scams had raised the hackles of those in the government, says people who have the mandate to rule are typical "bullies". Rai, who is due to retire in May this year, also said on Friday that time alone will tell whether he will join politics.

The Government auditor while stating that public officials make the most oft repeated statement that law would be allowed to take its own course over detection of large number of misdemeanors regretted that this does not happen at all. Touching upon the rash of corruption case that has come to the fore, Rai said things have changed and the silent majority can no more be bullied by the minority.

Describing 2012 as a defining year, the CAG said the year debunked the myth of silent majority.

"The myth that has been debunked is that of the silent majority. The majority is always silent because the minority feel that they have a mandate and they are exercising that mandate. They are more articulate and aggressive than the silent majority...... But, the times have changed....But, the so called people who have the mandate, are typical what I would call, bullies. The majority has to be consistent in their efforts to see the changes in the system," Rai said in response to a question at a banking symposium here.

Rai said the urban middle-class, who are usually averse to the idea of politics, are now asserting themselves, and are uniting for a cause.

"Today, there is a culture of end justifying the means, which has far reaching implications," he added

Rai said compulsion of coalition politics in every democracy is leading to convenient deviations. "The dominant culture of adjustment is prevalent... With honesty and integrity becoming the casualty."

"It is unfortunate that this is exactly what doesn't happen and any number impediments are created in law taking its own course," he said of statements by the public officials over the large number of misdemeanors which have been reported that the law would be allowed to take its own course.

When asked whether he had any plans to join politics post-retirement, Rai quipped, "Is there anything wrong in it?'" However, he said , "time alone will tell. I neither affirm nor deny..."